Re: Ex-CJ Iftikhar says he will meet President Musharraf
i am not as cynical as some of the folks here about ex-cj's intention. i did not agree with some of ex-cj's decisions such as on the steel mills case but overall, i thought that guy did care about pakistan unlike our political leaders like bb or ns. i also think that ex-cj could have fought the charges against him without using the crutches of people like imran khan and the lawyer community who used him to fight their own dirty battle. i think ex-cj could have earned a lot of admiration of the awam if he contested the charges in a dignified manner instead of turning his trial into one big tamasha which in the end damaged pak.
once the ex-cj became beholden to the lawyer and politicians, its hard to see how he could act in a neutral manner when deciding on cases involving govt and his supporters. ex-cj's solution was to keep both sides happy by keeping the heat on govt but not getting personally involved. given that govt's opponents were using supreme court as a political tool akin to a sledgehammer to stop the govt from functioning, govt in the end had little option but to act against the court. otherwise govt would be playing into the hands of its opponents.
its also good to see that the ex-cj is still willing to find a way out of the crises. if the govt is smart, it would take him on the offer but instead of restoring him to the court, ex-cj could be made a senator or something likewise. this way govt could steal opposition's thunder. and this compromise idea does not seem as far fetched as it sounds when you consider that musharraf made up with people like mushaid hussain who spent couple of years in jail. politics is the art of possible and when its in the interest of pak, ego should not stand in the way of a compromise.